I've already posted at length on Taika's view of the Makiwara as a training tool, or rather an attitude tool. And I've already talked about people not listening to Taika's wisdom at length. So those posts are in previous blogs but I wanted to add a little more information, but not totally give away all of Taika's pearls.
Since those previous posts, I've heard a lot of counter arguments about how the makiwara helps to build power, and yes, indeed it can. One of the problems Taika had with it, and why he preferred newer technologies was the linearly restricted motion it teaches. As Taika became more aware of what worked, and he became an uncertified Dr. of Kinesiology, (the scientific study of human movement addressing physiological, mechanical, and psychological mechanisms) he learned how the body resisted attacks. Simply striking hard and fast in a linear direction, did not achieve the results he was looking for.
Many of the Six Basic Principles of Tuite have a symbiotic or similar relationship to the Basic Principles of Kyusho and the Basic Principles of Atemi.
Basic Principle Five: Three Dimensions
If you think about how an opponent reacts to force, a direct linear strike can be resisted…..to a point. Obviously you are not going to hold up well to a .40 round coming out of my Glock. (But think about what a bullet proof vest does to displace that energy and reverse that principle.) We all probably did it as kids; trading blows to the belly, chest or torso. If you tighten your abs, and a punch comes in straight and hard, the force knocks you straight back. To a point, this can be resisted. And keep in mind, yes I am absolutely aware that this isn’t realistic training. So many other things are going on during an attack; body position, Atemi, body reaction, et cetera. But if you play the trading punches game, you can see that you can get pretty good at absorbing a straight attack, depending on your threshold of pain. There are quite a few styles out there that practice this art of absorbing until their bellies (or other items I wouldn’t would want to train with) are black and blue. Did you ever see Taika make a tight fist and punch someone straight in the belly unless he was deliberately showing what ‘not to do’? I didn’t. Such topics were usually followed with the comment, “Dis stupid.” Even watching old seminar videos from my naïve pre-Oyata style days, I have picked up on his different approach. He stressed a lot about being relaxed. But there was some very deliberate attack misdirection along with mental misdirection (he didn’t want to give away everything).
With Taika, you really had to work at looking at all the little details. If he demonstrated a strike 4 times in a seminar or class, I would pay attention to 4 different things while watching him. Usually, I’d first pay close attention to his footwork. Then maybe hands, then torso, then an overall view. If he continued on and demonstrated the same thing a few more times I’d look at overall head position and all the other little nuances. The great thing about reviewing thousands upon thousands of old seminar videos is the ability to track all these little nuances. Tracking the path of the hands, the feet, and the torso. We have this modern gift of technology. When Taika learned from Uhugushiku Tan Mei and then Wakinaguri Tan Mei, he didn’t have that benefit. I also have thousands of pages of notes I took during training sessions over the course of a quarter century, where I took detailed notes on positions of his body (to the best of my artistic abilities).
So now back to all the extreme analyzation. Look back at how makiwara are made. They don’t adequately allow for non-linear motion, unless someone has invented a new one I have not seen. The board allows for a forward back motion, and because it is essentially like a lever in the ground, a slight arc as it goes forward and back. Perhaps if the post was on a ball bearing type assembly that could also move up and down, it would allow for more training of non-linear motion. Patent Pending :) I could spend months trying to develop this idea, along with a lot of money, when a Body Opponent Bag will pretty much get me there. I got my first one (slightly used) on Craig’s list many years ago for $70 after conversations with Taika. When Taika would strike me, not mutually exclusive to the torso, it was never in a linear fashion. The strikes would have amazing power, but completely different from a brute force tight fist.
Power is Not Brute Force
Taika would put fist on my belly, relaxed. He would say ‘Ready’, then go. His fist wouldn’t close. He wouldn’t even really move his body during this demonstration. I would most definitely ‘go’. I would most definitely feel the effects as I went to the ground. I would most definitely feel the power and respect it. I have demonstrated this to student’s over the years and it doesn't ‘make any sense’ in our strength based American culture. We think of Arnold Schwarzenegger when we think of power. We think muscle. I teach my students from day one, not to think the American way.
To wrap up another one of my ramblings, be open to new ideas. Analyze, research and try new ways of doing things. We learn in many ways as human beings. Trial and error is one of the main ways. We cannot always be spoon fed, at least not any more. Taika gave up training with the makiwara decades ago and got continually better at striking as he aged. Does that make you wonder? It did me.
